Chapter 38

Desperate as they had all been to get down into the facility once the remaining Wraith had been subdued, the heat had beaten them back.

By the time the Kheprians joined them, the fighting was done, and all they could do was sit by the hatch and watch the flames rage while the Kheprians battled to bring them under control.

Teyla could not stop her tears from falling. In her heart, she knew John was gone. If he had been able to, he would have left the facility, and Rodney's scans had shown this was the only entrance. No one down there could have survived the heat and the flames…except Akalus. And that notion forced her to keep a watchful eye all around them, even when all she wanted to do was grieve.

The Kheprians, being much more resilient to heat than humans and Birajans, had begun making their way into the facility a couple of hours ago, fighting back the flames first, then using a cooling spray to speed up the temperature reduction of the Ancient facility. All the rest of them could do was wait.

Ronon had taken himself off to the outskirts of the rocky pillars to take some time to process everything that had happened. Mehra was closer, but similarly quiet as she rocked a little where she sat, lost in contemplation. Juroah and Tamrak remained close by. The older Birajan rested his elbows on his knees and clutched his head in his hands. Occasionally, Teyla thought she saw his shoulders shaking. She wanted to approach him….to offer comfort…but she could not find the strength of spirit required. This had broken something inside her, and though she knew it would mend in time, right now it was all she could do not to break down.

Rodney leaned against a rocky needle some ten feet or so away from them, tapping feverishly into his tablet. What he was trying to calculate she had no idea, but it was keeping him from talking, and right now that was a blessing. A frightened and angry Rodney was difficult to handle at the best of times, and this was far from the best.

Eventually, after many hours of work, the Kheprians deemed the facility safe for them to enter. Teyla wasn't sure she wanted to, but she knew she would not truly believe John was gone until she saw it with her own eyes. Everyone rose to follow the Kheprians down; even Rodney, who had seemed deep in his own work had overheard their words and knew to descend with them.

Only Ronon remained on the periphery. Teyla approached him, calling to him. Eventually, when she was almost with him, he turned to acknowledge her, his face stained with tears and soot.

'The Kheprians are ready to take us down into the facility,' she told him.

He just shook his head. 'I'll stay out here and keep watch,'

She walked forward, wondering if her presence was unwelcome, but feeling the need to offer support. Before she reached him. he lunged toward her, dropping to his knees and hugging her, sobbing in her arms. Her heart broke for him. He'd spoken only once about how he had lost the woman he loved on Sateda. To have one person he cared about stolen away by a fireball was bad enough. To lose another…It had clearly opened up old wounds and his pain was palpable. She could do nothing to help but hold him.

Eventually, Ronon stifled his sobs and rose. 'Go…I'm fine.'

He clearly wasn't but he'd done what he felt necessary to be able to focus and continue. With his grief voiced, he could now more effectively keep watch as he'd promised. She gave a quick nod, and strode back to the hatch, her heart thundering in her throat for fear of what they would find.

Though relatively cool, the passageway down still reflected heat off every surface, the walls bearing the marks of the fire that had filled them. She tentatively reached out to touch the metal surface lining the corridor, and though it did not burn her, it was too warm to keep contact with it comfortably for long. She couldn't bear to think about the ferocity of the heat ad flames that had torn through the place. Some small voice inside tried to tell her that it was possible John had not been there…after all, they hadn't actually seen him in the facility. But her logical mind told her that since the facility had only come online as they had been standing above it, John had to have been present. Only he had the genes to make that possible. There was no other explanation.

She caught up to the others in the first chamber the passageway opened onto. It appeared to be a control room, but it was almost unrecognisable as such, the consoles buckled and melted, even the floor panels crumpled by the intensity of the conflagration. The room was devoid of any sign of habitation, not a single sign of a lifeform, alive or dead, was there.

Rodney connected his tablet to one of a few ports that appeared to be relatively intact, attempting to gain data from the facility. The AI was failing, damaged beyond repair, but its last instruction was clear. It had conveyed the message to fire the drones. Why would Akalus have done that? It made no sense. Even with the Wraith attacking, this project had been his sole purpose in life for millennia – to destroy it was unfathomable. And Rodney said as much, several times as he scrolled through the data.

'There is more to see this way,' Hakkar told them, crouching low to pass through a doorway and lead them to another chamber.

This corridor was more blackened that the first and the metal even more crumpled. Fresh metal struts lined the way and twisted panels and rubble lined the way. It looked as though the passage had collapsed and the Kheprians had cleared the way for them to gain entrance. No one could have escaped. She cast her gaze back over her shoulder, seeing Mehra apprehensively peering at the sagging ceiling above them, shining her P-90 flashlight over it as she instinctively crouched lower. 'Is it safe down here?' Teyla called to Hakkar, in an attempt to put both the sergeant's and her own mind at ease.

'We have added supports where it collapsed and further along where we detected potential weaknesses in yield strength. It will hold,' he reassured her.

She glanced Rodney's way and he shrugged. 'They've never been wrong about this stuff before,' he told her. And that was true. They had spent weeks clearing the site at Phylacos without injuries or loss of life amongst their numbers. If Rodney trusted them, then so would she.

The walls became gradually more blackened as they progressed. Features of the chamber they were approaching came into view as they shone their flashlights that way. Standing proud amongst all the carnage was the Stargate, unaffected by the explosion other than bearing carbon scoring from the flames. It was the only thing untouched by the ravages of the fire.

As they entered, they saw three burnt corpses laid to their left, limbs contracted by the heat of the fire as it had consumed their flesh. A few feet away, a smaller body, similarly damaged lay curled near a semi-melted console.

Mehra nudged at one of the group of bodies near the entrance, knocking one of their arms off in the process. 'Oops.' Remnants of long, charred hair clung to their skulls, the bared teeth razor sharp. 'These look like Wraith to me.'

Teyla nodded. 'And this one must be Marmotah.'

Juroah pushed past her and bent down to the body. The bones were fragile, breaking apart as he touched the body to look for identifying signs. In a burned pocket in what little of his clothes remained intact he found a medallion, twisted by the heat. He held it up and examined it. 'This once belonged to his father. I cannot imagine anyone else would be carrying it.'

Teyla tried to feel pity for the little creature, but something told her his dash for the facility had not been an attempt to help John. He had acted far too recklessly. His own stupidity had cost him his life, but sadly, not his life alone. Teyla now spotted a remnant of fabric she recognised as belonging to Lansha's coat, and nearby a partially melted Kheprian weapon lay dropped to the ground. Lansha had been carrying it when he'd gone after Marmotah. He had been in this chamber when the drones hit.

Juroah, too, now noticed the pieces of fire-damaged cloth, a few of them scattered about, burned at their edges with patches randomly surviving. He crawled over to one and picked it up, then scoured the area with his old, lilac eyes. 'I don't see him…where is he?'

'I do not know,' Teyla admitted, looking to Hakkar for an explanation.

'We did not find any more signs of Lansha,' he reported. They fire may have been hot enough to incinerate him completely.'

'Then his body is gone…and we did not say the prayers to ease his passage to the next life.' Juroah gripped the fabric in his fingers, staring at it. No tears fell, but that was not the Birajan way and Teyla understood that. He would grieve in his own way.

'Uh…guys…I found something over here.' Mehra had shoved the three bodies aside and revealed more scorched material…this time it appeared to belong to Mishta.

Teyla watched the physical change come over Juroah as he slumped…unable to move this time. 'Both of them…gone. I have failed Bernard. I promised to keep them safe as if they were my own.'

Teyla knelt beside him and wrapped her arm around his shoulders. 'They both loved and respected you, Juroah. It was clear from everything they did. You did not fail them.'

'I always thought they would leave me one day…but not like this. How can I help them pass to the next world?'

'They were good souls, Juroah. They will have no trouble finding their way. I am certain of that.'

He looked at her, the sorrow weighing heavily on him, but he managed a small smile at her words. 'You are right. No one would refuse their passage.'

'No one,' she reiterated, sure they were in a better place.

'Oh, God!'

Her stomach lurched when Rodney spoke. The emotion in that cry almost wrenching her apart. When she peered over her shoulder, she saw him stood beside what had been a control chair, the one he'd been so agitated about when he'd realised it was missing from Phylacos. Tatters of black cloth clung to the seat in various spots that made no sense to her at this distance. It was only when she got up and approached that she saw what held them there.

She instantly covered her mouth, unable to respond in any coherent way. The fragments of Johns BDUs were pinned in place by metal rivets, now twisted and contorted, and around the pieces of fabric were deep black stains, along with other such stains on the dais.

'That's parts of his uniform,' Rodney whimpered, tears hanging, unshed, on his lower lids. 'Those marks, Hakkar says they contain calcium oxide, nitric oxide and phosphorus among other things. All things that are left behind when…' He faltered and drew his lips in tight as he steeled himself. '…when blood burns.'

Teyla stepped up onto the dais, carefully touching the chair.

'There are remnants of Wraith enzyme, too. Which I guess Akalus used to keep him alive while he did all this.' He fell silent a moment, then told her what was on his mind. 'I think it was Sheppard who fired the drones. I think he took control of the jumper from here somehow. He must have thought there was no other way.'

On the right arm of the seat, around the bolt that had been driven into it, remnants of what could have been John's wrist band clung to it, melted and fused together. It crumbled under her touch and she snatched her fingers back, as if she had done him some personal damage. 'Akalus pinned him here…in this chair?'

'It looks like it.' A tear broke free and Rodney swiftly scrubbed it away, determined to stay professional through this.

'Then he had no way of escaping?'

He shook his head. 'None.'

'Oh crap.' Mehra had joined them now and stared sadly at the remnants of Sheppard's uniform. 'I was really hoping he made it. I mean…he always does, right?'

'Not this time,' McKay snapped as he stomped away.

Teyla gently stopped Mehra from following him. 'Leave him be. He is not angry with you.'

'Right,' Mehra nodded, with a grim smile. 'I get that.'

Hakkar approached, having given them space to examine the chair. 'The other bodies all appear to be Wraith or Reliquiae. They must be more resilient to the heat.'

'That is likely, with their healing properties,' Teyla nodded, then she stretched out a hand to touch one of his claws. 'Thank you for all you and your men have done here, Hakkar. You have been a great help to us.'

'I only wish things could have ended more happily for you. You all deserved to go home.'

And that was when Teyla's grief came to full fruition. The thought that John had worked so hard to ensure they would all go home together, only to die on the brink of that happening buckled her knees right from under her. Mehra caught her and they both sank to the ground. 'You don't have to be strong for everyone else, Teyla. He was your friend, too.'

Teyla recalled the first time they'd ever met…when he had been so warm and personable compared to the other human military who had travelled to her camp. His Commanding Officer, Colonel Sumner, had looked through her as if she were inconsequential. John had instantly made her feel important and vital. He had never looked at her with anything but the respect of an equal. Now he was gone. It felt as if someone had reached in and torn out her heart.

'We cannot take him home,' she whispered, and Mehra pulled her into a hug.

'I'm sorry, Teyla. I know how much that must hurt, but Sheppard wouldn't want you to worry about that. He'd just be happy to know you're going home to Torren. It was what kept him going when he was at his sickest.'

That was true. That was the promise he'd made her, and because of his sacrifice she would be able to hold her son again. She dried her tears and nodded. 'You're right, Dusty. Thank you. I will not dishonour his sacrifice with my self-pity.'

'Hey, that's not what I meant –'

'I know,' Teyla told her. 'But you are right. John gave his life to save the rest of us. We should not mourn that…we should celebrate it by fulfilling the mission he gave his life for.'

'So…I guess we're going home?'

'We are. And I will carry the memory of his promise with me in my heart, and in that way, John will go home too.'

'Nice…I think that would make him happy,' Mehra agreed. 'Now let's get outta here. I can't take the smell of burnt Wraith anymore.'

oooOOOooo

A great expanse of calm ocean stretched out below, while above, and for as far as the eye could see, a perfectly cloudless blue sky was the only other thing in view. Banking right revealed nothing different, just more of the same perfect, undisturbed vista. A shift to the left had the same result. So, where the hell was he?

Sheppard checked the HUD, getting no feedback that made any sense. The jumper was telling him he was in the middle of nowhere, with no landmass and no other signs of civilization anywhere within a one-hundred-mile radius that it could lock onto. It was then he realised that he couldn't remember where he had been going, or where he had been. No mission-specific details were forthcoming at all. Had he been in an accident? He didn't feel injured, but he couldn't remember anything precise about how he had ended up here. And where the hell was his team? He hadn't taken on a solo mission in over two years. Were they trapped somewhere, relying on him to get help? How could he hep if he had no memory of what had transpired?

He took a chance and tried to contact Atlantis. 'Atlantis, this is Sheppard, do you copy?'

Nothing. Only silence.

'Atlantis, I repeat, this is Sheppard. Do you copy?'

Again, his call was met with utter, complete, silence. Not even static to suggest disrupted communication. He tried dialling the gate address for Atlantis, though he doubted he was in range of a Stargate for it to work. But he had to try something. He was flying blind.

'Atlantis, do you copy?'

Just more chilling silence. A shiver of cold ran the length of his spine, causing him to give an involuntary shudder. Something was wrong. He didn't know what it was, but he could feel it. He had to try to remember.

'Okay, how about you show me the nearest land mass?' Sheppard asked the jumper. Frustratingly, the HUD remained blank. No land masses, no mapped-out oceans, no comms, not even any basic data about what planet he was navigating. It was as if nothing real existed outside of his craft. 'Great. Hell of a time to malfunction,' he grumbled.

'There is no malfunction.'

He'd been certain he was alone in the cockpit. Now, as he looked across at the seat beside him, he saw a face he recognised.

'Teer?'

'Hello, John,' she smiled, her bright blue eyes sparkling with what appeared to be genuine joy. 'It has been a very long time.'

'What…what are you doing here?' he asked, trying to make sense of everything.

'Where do you think we are, John?'

That was the sixty-four-thousand-dollar question. He was lost in a malfunctioning puddle jumper, so he had no idea. But it wasn't just that. He had the feeling something was off. Wasn't he supposed to be somewhere else?

'Do you remember what happened to you?' Teer asked in that gentle voice of hers, the one that was so calming and yet held an innate strength in its quality.

He'd forgotten how pretty she was, with those strikingly bright eyes and soft, brown curls. He just stared at her for a while, feeling wrong to be admiring her that way. As if he was betraying someone else.

'John?'

'I…I had something important to do…or not to do.' He had the feeling he was meant to be doing something that would impact everyone and everything, but didn't want to say that out loud because it sounded so arrogant.

'That's right.' She said nothing more, just looked out of the windshield at the skies and oceans stretching out ahead of them.

'So, you're not gonna give me a cl –'

Suddenly his mind was filled with the image of a fireball rushing toward him, consuming everything around him. That was the moment it all came flooding back to him.

'Mishta!'

Teer turned back to him, her face a picture of pity and pain. 'It's over now, John. There is no more pain or suffering for any of you.'

'I killed her…' The words hung in the air, thick and choking, the reality of them just too painful to accept.

'She understood what was at stake, John,' Teer replied, reaching over to grasp his hand in hers. 'You all did. You made a difficult choice, but it was the right one. That was something you taught me once, remember? You faced your fear. You did the right thing.'

'I wanted her to survive…she didn't deserve that.'

'Did you deserve it?'

No…he didn't, but it had been a sacrifice he had been willing to make all of his adult life. That didn't make it any easier to make that choice on behalf of others. 'Where are we?'

'Where do you think you are?'

He hated it when people answered a question with a question. 'I don't know…but I'm guessing I'm not in a puddle jumper.'

'No…not really.'

Of course not. That was why everything felt so off, and he could find no geographical information in the craft's HUD display. And if Teer was here with him, that could only mean one thing. 'Did I ascend?'

'Yes,' she nodded. 'I helped you.'

'Wow. That's what I call a Hail Mary,' he breathed. 'Nice timing.' But inside he was panicking. He didn't want to be here…he needed to know what had happened to everyone else.

She gazed at him and her eyes spoke of deep sadness. 'I'm sorry I took so long to come for you. It has been so many years since humans existed that I had almost forgotten what it was like to hear their call. Your pain reached out to me and found me, drawing me into action. I just wish I could have come sooner and spared you so much of that horror. We have drifted for so long without contact that I had forgotten what it was to care for another.'

For a moment he didn't understand, but the memory of how far from his own time he was made him realise that it had been over sixty thousand years since he'd last seen her…and that humans had ceased to exist millennia ago.

'Well…you came when I needed you. So that's something,' he shrugged. 'Thought you ascended Ancients had a policy of no intervention?'

'This was different, John,' she replied. 'Akalus threatened the existence of us all. You stopped him. All we did was lift you up when you let go of your burden. The work was done. You were ready to move on.'

That made sense, he supposed. 'So, Akalus…did you ascend him too?'

She shook her head. 'The Wraith had pulled him apart and begun to absorb his energy. During the fire, they used even more and there was not enough left of him to exist in any meaningful sense. What was left dissipated…scattered through the universe. This was the only way it could end for him…but he has found his peace now at long last.'

He nodded. 'At least he can't hurt anyone else.'

'No…he cannot.'

Though he was glad for the rescue, such as it was, Sheppard couldn't shake the sadness of losing Mishta, even with the knowledge that he had spared her the pain of a Wraith feeding. 'So…is Mishta gone? And her brother?' he asked, afraid to hear the answer even though he knew he needed to.

'Gone?' The idea seemed to puzzle Teer.

'Yeah…you know…dead?' That final word made his voice crack as he spoke it. Just saying it made it more painfully real to him.

Teer tilted her head, her brow furrowed with compassion as she saw his anguish. 'What is death to you, John? Is it not just part of the journey of life?'

'It's not gonna be much of a journey without her.' She watched him without comment, compassion lighting her brilliant blue eyes. 'I suppose we were going to part ways whatever,' he continued. 'I couldn't stay with her because it was too dangerous for humans, and she couldn't come back with me because of the whole time-travel mess. I just…' He thought about what he wanted to say. 'I wanted to leave her somewhere I knew she was safe.'

'The universe is made up of many moments that echo throughout space and time. Some of them are pivotal…predestined…and no matter what, they will always happen. They have to be. They hold the universe together. This event was one of them. You, Mishta, Akalus, your friends…your connections are written through time and space. Nothing you could ever do will alter that course. And nothing could ever change the outcome.'

That struck him right in his heart. 'So...she had to die?'

Teer shimmered and grew fainter. 'You should not dwell on what is passed. You have a journey ahead of you now and choices to make.'

That was too obscure for him. He wanted a straight answer. 'Will I see her again?' he demanded.

'Mishta and her brother are at one with the universe. She is all around you, John. If you try to, you will feel her presence.'

'I…I don't know how.'

'You will find a way.'

'It's not enough!' This pain…this separation was more excruciating than anything Akalus had inflicted on him. He couldn't imagine life without her in it. 'Did they ascend?'

Teer's voice fell silent, and she faded from view. All that was left was the gentle hum of the propulsion pods. He suddenly felt very alone.

'Where did you go? Teer?'

'You have a decision to make, John,' she told him, her voice thin and ethereal, as if she were everywhere and nowhere all at once. 'I ascended you before I had chance to ask if that was what you wanted. The others allowed me to because they knew what you had done for them. But I am compelled to tell you that you do not have to remain, much as I wish you would. You can stay with us and know peace. Or you can return to your former life.'

The HUD sprang into life, showing a diagram of a planet rotating on its display. The annotations told him it was Gragoffa.

'Is Mishta with you?'

There was a pause before she spoke again. 'I am not permitted to give you any information that would influence your decision,' Teer told him. 'You are welcome to join us, John, but it must be of your own free will. You must choose the path that is right for you.'

He closed his eyes and concentrated, and for just a moment he thought he felt something…something that felt like the essence of Mishta. But it was weak and agonisingly distant. It wasn't enough. He couldn't exist like this, feeling she was always there just outside of his reach. He needed more than the ascended could offer him to get him through his loss. This wasn't peace, it was torture. He needed something more tangible.

He needed his friends.

'I promised Teyla I would get her home to her son. I want to see that through.'

'Then you have chosen your destination, John,' Teer breathed, her voice growing fainter. 'I hope to see you again one day.'

There was a flash of brilliant light, and suddenly Sheppard wasn't flying anymore. He was in a jumper, but he was so bitterly cold and dazed he couldn't make sense of his surroundings. He had only a few moments to take it all in before he lost consciousness, succumbing to the darkness encroaching at the edges of his vision.

oooOOOooo

When they emerged into the first rays of the primary sun, Teyla felt as if a weight had lifted off her. She had needed to see for herself, and now it was done. She felt certain that they were not physically leaving John behind, and the Wraith were, if not totally wiped out, at least decimated. John had both stopped Akalus and the Wraith, two things she knew he had truly wanted to succeed with. And he had done that. She hoped he had died knowing the peace he was bringing to others.

She spotted Ronon doubled over, hands on his knees, with Rodney tentatively patting his back. He had obviously broken the news to Ronon of their findings and, of course, Ronon was inconsolable. Sheppard was his best friend…had been almost since the day they'd met. They were brothers in arms, and now he was gone. Ronon would get through this, but it would take a heavy toll.

'We will return to Phylacos now,' Hakkar announced as his men began to board their transporter. 'When you are ready, we will take you to Balsandar and begin the work of returning you and the other humans to your homes. There is no hurry. We will wait until you are ready.'

'Thanks, Hakkar,' Mehra smiled. 'Much appreciated, big guy.' She looked over toward Ronon now as Hakkar left to join his people. 'He's taking it hard.'

'He is,' Teyla nodded. 'He is a man of few words, but his feeling run deeper than most.'

She walked over to her friends, dipping her head to Rodney as he threw her a grateful look, pleased to be relieved of his comforting duties. This level of emotional trauma was far beyond his area of expertise.

'Rodney, perhaps you should prepare the jumper for flight. We will join you shortly,' she suggested, giving him the excuse he so desperately needed to leave. Like Ronon, Rodney's emotions also ran far deeper than he showed. No doubt he needed a moment to pull himself together after seeing Ronon's reaction. The seclusion of the cockpit with present him with that opportunity.

Ronon straightened on hearing her voice. 'He said there was nothing left.'

She shook her head. 'No, but there was evidence of his presence before the fire.'

'He came here as the Wraith Slayer, and he died the Wraith Slayer. It was a worthy death,' he concluded, setting his jaw. 'And if there are any left, I'll finish the job for him.'

Teyla smiled and took his hand. 'But first we should rest.'

'Er…guys.'

Rodney's plaintive call had them all turning to look for him. He stood on the rear hatch of the jumper, his face as drained of all colour. He was so pale, Ronon darted forward to grab hold of him as if he thought he might pass out.

'What is it, Rodney?' Teyla gasped, now supporting him from the other side as everyone else hurried to the jumper. 'What is wrong?' She noticed he'd shed his jacket. 'Are you hurt?'

'No…nothing's wrong.' The faintest flicker of a smile started to twitch on his lips. 'Just…' He beckoned for them to follow him.

They did so, seeing the pale arm of someone slumped in the pilot seat dangling over the side of it. Teyla's heart literally skipped a beat as she realised she could also see a shock of black hair on a lolling head. She threw herself past Rodney and into the cockpit, and grasped the hand, relieved to find John was warm to the touch, despite his unconsciousness. He appeared unclothed aside from the jacket Rodney had draped across him. He didn't stir at the contact.

'How can this be?' she choked out, tears flowing freely. 'I was certain we had lost him.'

'I don't know…I honestly don't know,' Rodney beamed, then he started to laugh. How did we miss him crawling out here?'

Ronon sat down heavily on one of the rear benches and dropped his head into his hands, overwhelmed.

The others had followed them in. Juroah stared, slack jawed. 'The gods truly smiled on him today. If only they had taken the same care with Mishta and Lansha.'

Teyla looked up at him from where she crouched. 'Do not lose hope, Juroah. Perhaps they are still yet to be discovered.'

'I cannot even allow myself to wish for that so I can be crushed again,' he said softly. He sat opposite Ronon, Tamrak beside him whispering prayers for the departed.

'Dusty, would you help me move John so Rodney can take us up?' Teyla called back to her.

Mehra approached, but Rodney stepped in between her and Sheppard. 'Er…maybe you should leave that to me and Ronon,' Rodney suggested. 'He's a little…exposed.'

'Huh?' Mehra grunted.

Rodney rolled his eyes. 'There's nothing under the jacket.'

'Oh!' She backed off, hands raised to show she wasn't touching him.

Ronon did the heavy lifting, Rodney keeping Sheppard strategically covered to maintain his dignity. Still, he showed no sign of waking.

'Perhaps we should take him to a physician,' Juroah suggested. I know where we can find one we can trust. I'll show you the way.'

'I think that would be best,' Teyla nodded. 'You should sit up front with Rodney and guide him. But first, we can scan the area and seek out other life signs…just in case.'

With John safely strapped into the seat beside the pilot, Rodney got ready to do one final sweep then take them away from that place. Though the lack of any other life signs in the vicinity was not the result she'd been hoping for, there was nowhere Teyla had ever been happier to leave.

oooOOOooo

After keeping vigil over Sheppard for the past half hour, Rodney's throat was dry. The physician, a female named Attendant Luffnah, had carried out a thorough examination of his unconscious friend and declared him completely fit. In fact, she had been quite baffled by the results of her checks, since she now could find no trace of the illness that had plagued him when she'd previously met him. So apparently Akalus had found a way to cure him. The one good thing he'd done in his whole, miserable existence. Rodney mentally scolded himself. He was probably being too judgemental; everyone told him he was. He had no idea what Akalus had been like while alive. He might have been a brilliant scientist, like him. Was it fair to judge him on these past several months alone?

Then, the thought of Jemma's decomposing body popped into his head uninvited, and Rodney decided it was okay to be judgemental, just this once.

After the physician had checked him over, she had found him some clothes, which, although short in the arms and legs due to the difference in height between Birajans and humans, gave him some dignity. Good thing he was so slim. No way would they have found anything big enough for Ronon…or him for that matter. They didn't exactly look comfortable, but Juroah promised to let him have some of Lansha's things once they could return to their camp. The old Birajan was being stoic considering his loss. Rodney was actually glad to be in here with Sheppard because every time he saw the guy it choked him up.

'So…you made one hell of a mess back there, Sheppard,' Rodney said softly. 'What is it with you and blowing things up? The only thing still intact was the Stargate. But, Akalus has disappeared off the radar for now, and –' He stopped, he'd been about to say that Mishta and Lansha were missing, but Sheppard didn't need to hear that. That wouldn't encourage him to wake.

'Anyway…seems like the big plan to end the universe is off the agenda, since as soon as you wake up we can get on our way. I figured we should just plant ourselves back on Atlantis a day or two after we disappeared because there is literally no way that place will be in any fit state for me to return to if we leave it any longer than that. Can you imagine how much trouble they can get themselves into without their lead science officer and military commander?'

His comment met with a soft groan and a slight scrunching of Sheppard's forehead. It was the first movement he'd made of his own accord since they'd found him on the jumper.

Rodney stood up, watching him a few seconds longer, seeing further signs than he was surfacing. He darted out of the room to the kitchen where everyone else was talking quietly, discussing everything they had been through.

'He's…he's waking up!' he stammered, only to be shoved aside by Ronon, who was first out of his seat and into the darkened treatment room.

By the time Rodney forced his way back in there along with everyone else, Sheppard's lids were beginning to flutter and eventually they opened. His eyes fell on Ronon first and he tensed, drawing back.

'Sheppard? You all right?' the big guy asked.

Sheppard blinked a few times as if he couldn't quite see straight, then looked around at everyone else gathered there. He looked…puzzled.

Teyla moved forward and crouched beside the bed he was stretched out on. 'John…is something wrong?'

He focused on her, but none of the confusion left his face. 'Who are you people?'

Teyla paled, glancing around at the physician. 'He does not remember us.'

Luffnah grasped his face and studied John's eyes, looking for signs of problems. Then she pushed her way out of the room without saying a word.

'Why does she look so weird? John whispered, looking shaken. Then he spotted Juroah and Tamrak. 'Aannddd…there's more of 'em!'

Rodney swallowed hard. This was bad. He didn't even remember that he'd seen aliens before.

'They will not harm you,' Teyla reassured him, even as he flinched when she tried to touch his arm. 'They are our friends.'

'Move aside,' Luffnah ordered as she returned. She brought with her a handheld device, which she now waved around his head, examining a data screen she held in her other hand as she did it. 'I see no trauma to his brain. There is no reason he should have lost his memory.'

'Is it possible his mind chooses not to remember?' Teyla asked. 'I have heard that at times of great trauma, the brain can suppress distressing memories.'

'That is a possibility,' the physician mused. 'But the loss of memory would usually be more specific. Your friend appears to have forgotten more than would be expected under such circumstances.'

Teyla looked toward Rodney now, but he had nothing comforting to say. Was what Sheppard had done so awful that he'd broken his mind somehow? Was this the way he would remain?

'Who removed his translator?' the physician asked them.

'He doesn't have it?' Rodney asked.

'It must've been Akalus,' Ronon suggested.

'But that makes no sense. Akalus would have needed him to understand what he said,' McKay pointed out.

'Well, he does not have one now.'

'And what about the control chip,' Ronon piped up now. 'There's not even a mark from where it was.'

'What are you all talking about?' Sheppard demanded. 'Who are you people?'

'We are your friends, John,' Teyla tried to explain, using her most soothing tone.

It didn't help. 'Why are you calling me that? Is that my name?'

'Oh, man! This just keeps getting better,' Mehra grumbled. 'You're Lieutenant Colonel John Sheppard, United States Air Force,' she told him loudly, as if she thought shouting would drive the words home more firmly.

He squinted at her. 'I…' They hung in his words, watching his face shift through varying degrees of thought. 'I don't remember any of that.' That response was met with a collective sigh of disappointment.

'Do you remember Mishta?' Juroah asked hopefully.

'What did he say?'

Teyla helpfully translated. 'He asked if you remember Mishta.'

Again, they all waited as he frowned in thought. But in the end. he just shook his head. 'Sorry…I don't know what that is.'

Juroah looked truly dejected and took a seat at the back of the room. 'I thought for sure she would be the one thing he recalled.'

Then, Rodney had a Eureka moment. 'Move aside,' he demanded, pushing through to John's bedside. Even Teyla was almost toppled in the rush forward. 'Did you find any Wraith enzyme in the blood you took earlier?' he asked Luffnah.

'No…nothing like that. Just normal blood for a human, aside from his specific hereditary gene.'

Rodney grinned. 'Look at him…I mean…he looks amazing!'

John's face flushed with colour. 'Uh…thanks? But I…'

'We all know what he went through in that facility. He was rivetted to the chair, for God's sake. And the Reliquiae shredded his arm back at Phylacos. But there's not a mark on him. No scars, no holes. See?' He snatched up Sheppard's arm and held it out for them all to see.

'Uh, excuse me? Rivetted to a chair? What the hell are you talking about?' Sheppard demanded, snatching his arm back. 'Look, you people all seem…nice. But I just wanna go home now.'

'Do you even know where home is, hmm?' Rodney asked, folding his arms and staring down at him.

A distant look clouded Sheppard's eyes as he once again tried to fish for any piece of information that might help. But eventually he sighed, 'No…no, I don't.'

'Rodney…what is the point of all this?' Teyla now asked, clearly upset that John was growing more despondent with every question he was asked.

'I think he ascended.'

Everyone fell silent as his words sank in, then Ronon pointed out, 'But he's here.'

McKay rolled his eyes and asked all the great scientists who had gone before him to give him strength. 'He is now…but he wasn't…for a while.'

Ronon just frowned at him. 'That makes…no sense.'

Rodney groaned, realising he was going to have to expend more of his quickly dwindling energy on an explanation. 'You all remember Daniel Jackson, right?'

'Yes, an intelligent man who speaks very knowledgeably, and far too quickly…not unlike yourself,' Teyla replied, immediately irritating him.

'Except he's not rude,' Ronon added.

'Hey!'

'He's not wrong.' Mehra agreed, grinning.

'Do you want me to finish the explanation or not?' he demanded.

'We're just teasing, McKay,' Mehra told him, signalling for him to go ahead.

'Well, Daniel was once exposed to a massive dose of radiation when rescuing someone from a badly executed experiment. He was on the brink of death, but he ascended…actually he was helped to ascend, but that's beside the point. He spent a while as an ascended being, which probably suited him since he thinks he's better than everyone else anyway –'

'Rodney!' Teyla chastised, bringing him back on track.

'Actually, I'm right about that, because he went against the other ascended, broke their rules of intervening to help in the fight against the Goa'uld, and got kicked out. He descended, I suppose you could call it. He took human form again because apparently you can do that. And when he came back, he couldn't remember anything.'

Teyla looked at John, then at Rodney, her expression filled with hope. 'Yet he was able to return to his previous life…he eventually remembered?'

'Yes…took him a while, but for the first two months he was on an unfamiliar planet, surrounded by strangers and with no reference to the things he needed to remember. So, with luck Sheppard might recall things sooner once we get back to Atlantis.'

'Atlantis?' Sheppard now interrupted, frowning at him. 'As in the city that sank beneath the sea?'

'You remember!' Teyla gasped with delight.

'No…but apparently he does have a recall of ancient Earth mythology. Which is something, I suppose,' Rodney explained.

'So, he ascended…then descended…in a matter of hours?' Mehra clarified.

'Well, I'm sure time's relative when you're an ascended being, but yes, in terms of our concept of the passage of time, that's what I think happened.'

'She said something about ascending,' John now muttered, lost in thought again.

That caught Rodney's attention immediately. 'Who…who mentioned ascending?'

'The woman in my dream,' he murmured, as if he were embarrassed to say it out loud.

'And did she have a name?' Rodney demanded, keen to press him for more since he seemed to be remembering something. 'Was it Oma? Oma Desala?'

Once again Sheppard frowned as he tried to pull the memory forward. 'I don't think so…that doesn't ring any bells.'

'Huh. Are you sure? Only…this is kind of her thing.'

'Who is this Oma Desala?' Ronon asked.

'Now that is a story far too long and complicated to get into right now,' Rodney told him.

'Teer.' All eyes now moved to Sheppard as he spoke the name his team recognised. 'Her name was Teer. I think I knew her from somewhere.'

'Yes…you did. In the biblical sense, too,' Rodney smirked.

Sheppard just squinted back at him. Apparently, he hadn't recalled that little detail yet.

'So, it is true…he ascended?' Teyla beamed. 'Teer must have come to help him.'

'You know…you do look familiar,' Sheppard suddenly told Teyla, his eyes lighting up as he looked at her. 'A smile like that would be hard to forget.'

'Yes yes, you're very good friends, have been for years, and she is one hundred percent taken, so don't start Kirking on her,' Rodney immediately interrupted.

'Kirking?' Sheppard echoed, and Rodney could see that meant something to him. 'As in James T Kirk?'

'Huh,' Rodney huffed, mildly amused that Sheppard knew where the reference came from. 'So, mythology and Star Trek are the two things that survive ascension memory loss? All the important stuff. That's great…just great!'

Sheppard narrowed his eyes at him. 'It's Rodney, isn't it?' he clarified. 'I was just being friendly…you should try it some time.'

Rodney's jaw dropped. Those words immediately jumped out at him. Those exact words had formed part of the conversation they'd been having shortly before they'd been abducted by the Kheprians, and now, just on the verge of going home, he'd said them again. It felt like they'd come full circle.

Rodney heard Ronon snort out a laugh behind him. 'Seems like he remembers you, too.'

And yes, it appeared that might be the case after after all.

A/N: Thanks, as always, to everyone reading and reviewing. It's always very much appreciated. There are five chapters left, so let's see where we go from here!